


Snow Place I'd Rather Be

by ShiningTEA



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Eve, Erwin is Santa, Multi, North Pole Workshop, elf au, saving christmas, snowball war
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:13:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,187
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28263702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShiningTEA/pseuds/ShiningTEA
Summary: Christmas Eve happened to be Marco Bodt's first night at the North Pole workshop. Here he would be working for Santa Claus in the Junior Flyers division- the next generation of sleigh riders. Everything was going well for him;  He met Santa, he made new friends and snowballs and probably love were filling the snowy air.Until an event happens that completely turns Marco's night around- An event that puts the fate of Christmas on the line.
Relationships: Marco Bott/Jean Kirstein, Minor Levi/Erwin Smith - Relationship, Moblit Berner/Hange Zoë
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Sooo, this fic was originally meant to be a one shot but it was getting too long so I split it. It was also meant to be Gen but I kinda got sucked into the jeanmarco fandom haha. Regardless, I had lots of fun writing this.
> 
> Well, I hope you guys enjoy reading. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!!
> 
> ♡♥

One snowy day, Hange and Moblit were comfortably lounging on their couch when out of the blue, Hange had suggested for them to do a "Christmas reading session, just like in the movies!". Moblit had asked why. That was a mistake on his part because Hange began to ramble ninety-nine reasons on why it was a great idea. Moblit still hesitated to agree. So, as a last resort, Hange gave Moblit they're freakishly adorable puppy eyes. And honestly, how was Moblit supposed to say no to that?

Fast forward to the present, it was the night of Christmas Eve. Moblit and Hange were in their pajamas, sitting on comfy armchairs that faced each other. The hot flames in the fireplace crackled loudly beside them, providing warmth against the snowy blizzard outside.

Hange took a sip of their hot chocolate. "Ahh, you make the best hot coco, babe!" They placed it back down on the coffee table.

Heat pooled up in Moblit's face. "Thank you."

Hange grinned. "Okay, let's start this thing." They fished under the armchair until they retrieved a concerningly big book and dropped it on their lap. "Get comfortable, Moblit. This is gonna be one ride of a story."

"I'm looking forward to it."

Hange opened the book and turned to the first page. They cleared their throat and began to read from it with their best narrator impression.

_"'Twas the night before Christmas, when Marco Bodt had reached the North Pole._  
_Oh how he'd dreamt of this, since he was just six years old._  
_Marco tried hard to calm his racing thoughts._  
_For tonight is the night he'll meet Santa Claus."_

  
Marco was practically glowing as he followed the petite elf girl, Nifa, into the North Pole workshop. After years of training at the Elf Academy, he would finally be able to work for the great legend, Santa Claus. It took a while to come here because Marco had to spend extra time earning money- expenses for such a prestigious academy was very expensive after all!

Though as he looked around the famous workshop decorated with candy canes, gingerbread and other Christmas festivities, all the hardships he went through were definitely worth it.

Nifa brought Marco to what must've been the lobby. "We have to wait here for a bit. Your tour guide is supposed to be here ten minutes ago but it seems that he is late. Sorry for the inconvenience."

Marco gave Nifa a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, I don't mind having to wait a little while longer."

Just as Nifa was about to respond, an elf who looked to be around Marco's age came skidding to a halt at the entrance of the lobby. He stopped to catch his breath before approaching Marco and Nifa.

"I'm really sorry, Nifa." He grumbled while righting the elf hat on his short, ash brown hair. "My stupid alarm broke somehow."

Nifa sighed. "It's okay, Jean. You're lucky Marco here is one patient elf."

Jean turned around to address Marco. "So you're Marco Bodt, huh? The name's Jean Kirstein. I'll be your tour guide for tonight." He stuck out a hand for Marco to shake.

Marco took it and shook his hand. "Nice to meet you, Jean."

Jean scratched the back of his neck. "So, um... let's get going then?"

"Yeah, sure! Lead the way, Jean Kirstein."

Jean took Marco around the workshop from section to section, floor to floor. And Marco tried really hard to pay attention to what the other elf was saying but holy heck was it hard with everything going on around him. There were so many different rooms with elves working their butts off. A toy making room, a gingerbread room, a cloth sewing room, a-

A smack to Marco's head snapped him out of his daze. "Huh?"

"Hey, Marco. Are you listening?"

Marco turned to look at a pissed off Jean rasing a brow. "Uhh... sorry. I'm just a bit excited. I mean, it's not everyday you get to see these things."

"Until you start working here, that is. Then everything becomes the same old shit." Jean paused to reconsider. "Well, except for Santa Erwin."

Marco cocked his head. "Santa Erwin?"

Jean sighed as if he had been asked this a hundred times. "You know, Santa Erwin Claus? The son of Santa Claus."

Marco nodded slowly. "Ah, I see."

"Not gonna lie, Santa Erwin's pretty cool. Everyone here loves him. Even Annie."

"Who's Annie?"

"You're full of questions, huh Marco Bodt?" Jean threw his arm over Marco's shoulder. He stared at him intently but answered his question anyway. "Annie's like the Grinch around here. She absolutely hates Christmas."

"Then why-"

Jean clicked his tongue. "For sugar cookies' sake. You can ask her yourself. We're finally at our last stop- the Junior Flyers division. This is where you'll be working with me and a few other elves. Everyone here are selected or applied to become the next generation of sleigh riders."

Jean let go of Marco as the two of them walked into an open room, which was located right in front of the North Pole's entrance. Unlike the other rooms which were filled with hundreds of elves, this one was only filled with several.

"Hey guys. I'm back." Jean plopped down into a seat next to a bald elf.

"'Sup man." The bald elf said from where he was cutting tape.

"You finally done with slacking off, Jean?" An elf with ferocious eyes asked.

"Shut the fuck up, Jaeger. Did you forget I have tour guide duty today?" Jean waved his hand to Marco. "That's Marco Bodt. He's gonna be working here starting next year."

Everyone greeted Marco warmly and introduced themselves to him. There was a total of nine of them, including Jean. Marco was now acquainted with an Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Connie, Sasha, Ymir, Christa and Annie. Well, he _hoped_ to be acquainted with Annie because as of right now, she was peacefully sleeping on a chair. Marco was told that she was the slacker of the group, but extremely skilled.

Apparently there was a Reiner the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Bertholdt Hoof-er in their circle of friends. Both of which were half reindeer, half elf. Marco was _so_ looking forward to meeting them.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Marco asked.

"There isn't much to do. We're just adding some finishing touches to the gift wrapping." Armin said.

"Yo Marco, you good at tying bows?" Ymir called.

"I'm pretty good."

"Great! Come sit your butt here." Ymir shifted and patted the empty space between her and Christa.

Marco approached them and sat down. He took the red ribbon that Ymir offered him. "Thanks man. I'm gonna get some shut eye. If you need any questions, you can ask Christa."

"Hi Marco!" Christa quipped beside him.

Marco smiled. "Hi Christa." An elegantly tied bow that she was holding caught Marco's attention. They looked so fricking cute. "Wow, I really like the way you tie ribbons. Could you show me how you do it?"

"Aww, you're so sweet. Here, it's really easy!"

As the time passed by while the elves in the Junior Flyers division worked, loud footsteps were heard coming down the stairs.

Connie gasped. "It's the boss!"

"Oh my snowflakes!" Sasha screamed, spitting out some gingerbread cookies from her mouth in the process.

"Close your mouth, Sasha. That's candy cane gross." Jean grumbled.

Marco was lost. "The boss? Who's that?"

"Santa Erwin." Eren whispered as he stared at something behind Marco.

Marco turned behind and there he was. Standing only a few feet from the elves was Santa Erwin, with all his jolliness glowing around him. Marco stared at him with wide eyes because _1) IT'S MOTHERSHITTING SANTA!_ and _2) WHY IN THE HECK WAS SANTA HANDSOME?!_ Instead of a full belly, it was clear that Santa Erwin had a fit and muscular body under the red suit he wore. Replacing his well known beard was a clean-shaven, chiseled jaw. And underneath his Santa hat was not his familiar white, thinning hair but neat, blond hair instead. _Candy God, help me._

The elves stood up and gave an elf salute to Santa.

Santa gave his famous catchphrase. "Hohoho!" He saluted back then said, "At ease, everyone." His eyes searched the group and landed on Marco's. "You must be Marco Bodt."

Marco almost tripped as he stepped out of the bench. He hurriedly walked up to Santa. "Y-Yes sir, Santa Erwin Claus, sir! It's an hour- I mean, it's an honour to meet y-you, your jolliness." Marco gave a little bow. The pointy tips of his ears turned red as he heard a few snickers from behind him.

Santa chuckled. "I'm pleased to meet you. Welcome to the North Pole workshop, a place of possibilities and magic. I hope the others have been treating you well."

"Of course we have." Connie shot finger guns at Marco. "We already have a nickname for him, right freckles?"

"I don't remember getting a-"

"That's right, freckles might’ve been here for like five minutes but it already feels like we've known him for five years." Connie made a sentimental face as he hit his chest with his fist.

"Marco who? I only know Freckled Jesus." Sasha hollered.

Jean rolled his eyes. "Don't mind the stupid nicknames, Marco. Yours is the least ridiculous among all of us."

"You would know, horse-face." Eren smirked.

"Fuck you, suicidal bastard." Jean turned to Marco. "Horse-face is _not_ my nickname."

"Yeah, it's _Jean-boi~_ " Connie singsonged.

Santa Erwin smiled. "I'm glad that all of you are getting along so well. A strong bond is necessary for being sleigh riders, after all." The watch on Santa's wrist started to beep. "Oh, I have to go get ready for the trip. I'll see you elves later. Hohoho!"

Marco nodded, beaming from head to toe. He sat back down to hear Ymir laughing. "Pfft, Santa thinks we have a strong bond."

"Flashbacks to all the snowball wars." Connie said, staring at the wall blankly.

Armin grimaced. "There's gonna be one tonight, right?"

"Heck yeah!" Jean smirked. "Marco's gonna love it. Especially the part where I'm gonna beat Jaeger's ass."

_"YOU WISH!"_

"I have no idea what in the candy canes is a snowball war but I'm in."

"That's the spirit, freckles." Ymir cheered.

Before all the snowball talk, Marco had a question that was bugging him ever since he finally got to meet Santa Erwin. "So, um... where's Mrs Claus?"

The elves at the table tried hard to stifle their laughter. If you asked Marco, they did a really terrible job at it. He could only wonder what was so funny about his question.

Connie seemed to be counting down the clock from "5, 4, 3, 2, 1".

The front doors to the workshop opened to reveal five familiar looking elves wearing what Marco recognised were the sleigh riders outfit. Next to him, Eren squealed, "It's Chief Levi and his squad!"  
  
Marco's eyes widened. _That's who they are!_ Which elf didn't know about Chief Levi and his squad? The sleigh riders that work with Santa to deliver gifts to children all over the world.

Connie whispered to Marco, "Watch closely, Marco."

"Okay..." Marco said. He watched as Chief Levi and his squad crossed the room over to Santa. They seemed to be giving a debrief to him. Something about "snow blizzard" and "shitstorm out there". Marco couldn't tell what he was looking for until suddenly, Santa Erwin leaned in to give a peck on Chief Levi's lips.

Marco gaped at them, waving his arms in the air frantically. _"WHAAAT?!"_ He looked back and forth between the two elves and his new group of friends with disbelief. "Wait wait, _wait_. Now just hold on a diddly darn minute. You're telling me- Mrs Claus is actually a _Mr_ _Claus_?! And Mr Claus is the _legendary sleigh rider_??" Marco sputtered.

Connie and Sasha laughed.

"Yup." Armin said. 

Marco held his head in his hands. "My whole life was a lie." He whispered.

Christa placed a reassuring hand on Marco's arm. "Are you okay?"

"Yes- no? Sorry. I'm just trying to process this because _WHAT. THE HECK_?!"

"Oh, okay." Christa smiled. "You're taking this quite well."

"Huh?" Marco was over here having a mid-life crisis and this was apparently _taking it well_?!

"I agree." Mikasa said. "Your reaction is tame compared to Eren and Jean's."

"Oh man!" Sasha cackled. "I will never forget that."

"Nobody tell Marco what happened! I thought we left that shit behind us already!" Jean screamed.

"I hate to agree with Jean but he's right!" Eren slammed his fists onto the table.

"Don't worry dudes, we won't snitch..." Connie whispered the last part, "right in front of your faces."

Ymir, Sasha and Connie all shared wicked cackles.

A horrified Marco turned to look at Armin. "Should I be concerned?"

He gulped. "It's worse when Reiner is here."

Connie stopped cackling to tell Marco, "All I can say, _for now_ , is that Eren and Jean's reactions might’ve or might’ve not involved tables flipping and elves fainting."

Marco nodded slowly. "...Nice to know."

"Would you look at the time..." Ymir smirked.

All the elves, even Annie who had just woken up from her slumber, turned to look at the clock on the wall.

"It's 8:00 p.m." Armin whispered.

In a second, the air around them turned tense. All at the same time, Mikasa cracked her knuckles, Sasha bit into her candy cane, Christa took out her first-aid kit and Jean and Eren glared at each other with such intensity that Marco thought they were going to shoot laser beams out of their eyes.

Connie stepped onto the table and punched the air. "IT'S SNOWBALL WAR TIME!"

"No standing on the tables, Springer! And quiet the fuck down, brats!" Levi called from where he stood.

The group of elves muttered an apology. Connie stepped back down with haste before whispering harshly, "It's war time, baby!"

***

The elves from the Junior Flyers division headed outside of the North Pole workshop to meet up with Reiner and Bertholdt before the "snowball war" began. The reindeer's stable was placed just beside the workshop. They managed to reach there in just a few minutes by walking.

Marco followed the group as they came to a stop in front of a decent looking stable. They stared at it in silence for a few moments until Marco spoke up. "Do we knock..?"

"We should." Armin pursed his lips. "They were actually meant to meet us in the workshop. So maybe they're busy with something..."

"Something _nasty_." Connie imitated the act of barfing before he looked around at the elves. "Alright, who's going in?"

Everyone began to whistle off tune while averting their eyes from each other. Then Jean grumbled and stormed past them towards the stable's door. "Fine, if no one's going in, I'll go! I just want to get this over with!"

"Be our guest!" Ymir called.

"He didn't have to be such a Grinch about it." Connie mumbled.

Sasha tilted back and forth on her heels. "You know Jean. He still wants to keep up his bad boy image even when he's taking one for the team."

Eren scoffed. "Taking one for the team, my ass. He doesn't care about anyone but himself." 

The group of elves shared a halfhearted agreement consisting of "true, true" and "facts" except for Marco and Christa.

"I don't know guys..." Marco rubbed his hand behind his neck. "I know I haven't known Jean for a long time but, he seems like a pretty okay guy..... underneath all that arrogance and anger issues."

Connie snickered. "You're defending Jean-boi? You really are Freckled Jesus."

"Well, I-"

Marco was interrupted by two reindeers walking out the stable. Jean followed out after them.

The reindeer with a red nose and bright, yellow fur began to circle around Marco, as if playing with him. After one round, he came to a stop in front of him. The other reindeer that had much darker fur, shyly stood beside the more confident red-nosed one.

Suddenly, their forms started to glow so bright that Marco struggled to keep his eyes open. He stared in awe as glitter whirled around the reindeers until it finally burst out in different directions. Now standing where the two reindeers had just been, were two male elves.

Ymir flicked glitter of her elf dress. "You guys really went all out with the glitter this time."

The yellow haired elf grinned. "Well, I just happened to notice a _new somebody_ and wanted to show off a bit." He turned to look at Marco. "I dont think I've seen you around here before."

"Tonight's my first time at the North Pole workshop! I'm gonna be working at the Junior Flyers division next year. My name's Marco Bodt." He stuck out his hand.

The elf grabbed Marco's hand to pull him in for a bro hug. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Marco Bodt. I'm Reiner Braun. I get called the Red-Nosed Reindeer sometimes because of the red nose." Reiner tapped on his nose. "It's red because of the cold though."

"Which basically means all the time!" Eren added.

Reiner draped his arm over the other elf's shoulder. "And this elf over here is Bertholdt Hoover."

Bertholdt gave a small wave. "Hello."

Marco smiled. "Hi, Reiner and Bertholdt. You guys are _really_ awesome!"

Reiner puffed up his chest. "Why thank you."

Jean rolled his eyes. "All right, we done with the whole introductions thing?"

Reiner gasped. " _Riiight_ , we have a snowball war to get to! I'm gonna fucking _crush_ all of you!"

Marco was slightly taken aback by the sudden change from the friendly elf just a few seconds ago. He swallowed hard.

The twelve friends made their way to a secluded area right behind the workshop. It was filled with a few abandoned shacks here and there but otherwise empty and spacious. All of them stood a few feet apart in fighting stances.

Armin spoke up. "Okay, Marco. The game-"

" _War_." Connie corrected.

"Urm... the war rules are simple. You just throw snowballs at each other however way you wish. It's kill or be killed so you can go all out. There aren't really any teams-"

"Every elf for himself!" Reiner hollered.

"-but you can team up if you want to. I don't recommend it though because there's a lot of backstabbing. Finally, last elf standing wins. Any questions?"

Marco pointed to where Annie was standing a few metres away from the group. "Is she joining us?"

Armin shook his head. "Most of the time, no. She won't bother you if you don't engage. Don't be cocky and do so because she will not hesitate to destroy you. Anymore questions?

"...No, thanks."

"Okay! Then from the count of three we shall begin the snowball war. 3, 2-"

A snowball flew straight to Armin's face.

_"THE WAR HAS BEGUN!"_

A battle cry was formed by someone. Ymir, maybe? Or Connie? Marco couldn't tell because before he knew it, there were snowballs flying all over the place. He tried to form one himself but he was no where near the match of Eren's wrath. One by one, snowballs would be blown from his direction. Marco couldn't even _try_ to get close to him with Mikasa's crazy accurate aim. And with Armin giving tactics, the three of them were an unstoppable force.

That was no stopping Jean Kirstein though. He ran headfirst into the heat of battle. "I'm gonna kill you, Jaeger!" He screamed as a storm of snowballs got chucked his way. It was a pretty admirable watch-

Marco's back got hit by a snowball. Then another. And another. And it just kept on coming with no pause. Marco tried to shield himself against the merciless attack. He squinted to see Sasha and Connie hiding behind a wall of snow, with snowballs ready to fire at the side.

"WE'RE GONNA SEND YOU BACK TO HEAVEN, FRECKLED JESUS!" Sasha shouted over the cries of other elves.

"I'D RATHER YOU NOT!" Marco yelled back. He began to throw snowballs at the two of them but it was no use. He was outmatched. In a way, Marco kind of knew this was the way he was gonna go out.  
  
Just when Marco thought all hope was lost, a bulky elf came screaming as he ran in front of Marco.

"Reiner?" Marco gasped.

Reiner turned around and grinned. "I've got you, bud." 

Marco watched as Reiner shielded him, his body unyielding to the snow attack behind him. _Was this guy made of armour or something?!_

Suddenly, the snowballs stopped coming. Marco looked past Reiner to see Bertholdt standing between a fallen Connie and Sasha. The two of them groaned. Bertholdt shot Reiner a small thumbs up.

"Great job, Bert!" Reiner faced Marco. "You good?"

"Yeah! Thanks to you-"

Marco's eyes went wide. He slowly looked down. Reiner had crunched a handful of snow onto Marco's stomach. He smirked. "Key advice, Marco; trust no one."

"W-What?" Marco backed a way when he saw Reiner reach inside his pocket. "Wait, Reiner, we can talk this out-"

But it was clear that Reiner did _not_ want to talk things out when he began to charge towards Marco with a bunch of snow in his hand. Marco yelped and ran as fast as he can, away from the betrayer.

Marco stopped to rest his hands on his knees, panting hard. As he looked around at the new territory he was in, he realised that he seemed to be in the middle of something.

"You're gonna pay for what you did to Christa, horse shit!" Ymir yelled.

"Wait, don't!" Jean scrunched his eyes shut and shielded himself with his arms for the incoming attack.

Ymir lifted a giant snowball, double the size of Marco's head. Marco panicked, he couldn't just stand here and do nothing. Without giving much thought, Marco's body moved forward as Ymir launched the snowball at Jean.

Half of Marco's body got hit in the process of blocking the attack from Jean. Marco groaned as the colossal snowball bursted into oblivion.

Jean lowered his arms slowly, confused as to why he hasn't got hit. The body on the ground caught his attention. "Marco?" Jean bent down to see him better. "Marco, it's you! You saved me!"

"Mmh, wha-" Marco opened his eyes and _oh shit_. Marco's jaw dropped a little.

His heart skipped a beat at the sight in front of him. Jean was only a few inches away from his face. With this close-up view, Marco could see all the striking features of his face. Like Jean's long, dark eyelashes that was littered with snowflakes, the pink blush on his defined cheekbones, his so very captivating fierce eyes that was glinting with joy and his soft, pink lips that were pulled into a smile.

 _He's adorable when he smiles._ Marco's face heated up. _Shit, Jean is hot and adorable!_ How did Marco not notice this before. Did he get so distracted by the magic of the North Pole's workshop, he missed this beauty in front of him?!

Jean grabbed Marco's shoulders. "Thanks, dude. No one's ever- uhm, I really appreciate it. I owe you one."

Marco nodded dumbly. "Uhhhh... y-yeah, sure. It was, uh, n-no problem."

Jean clenched his fist and smirked. "Don't worry, freckles. I'll avenge you." Then he stood up to probably go find Ymir.

 _Freckles. He called me freckles._ Marco pulled his elf's hat down in hopes to hide away from the world, still lying in the snow.

The sound of someone giggling made Marco peek out from his hat. Connie was sitting next to Marco's head, a smug look on his face.

Marco side-eyed him. "What?"

"Oh, nothing." The look on Connie's face turned even more smug. "It's just that... you have a _crush~_ "

"Wha- _Crush?!_ I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Tsk tsk, Marco. It's your first day here and you're already head over heels for someone? For _Jean_ , out of all the elves!"

 _"WHAAAT?!"_ Marco's voice rised in pitch. "Nononono. I- no. I don't-"

Connie stood up. "Oh wait 'til the gang hears about this!"

Marco shot up. "Wait, don't!"

But it was too late. Connie was already sprinting off. "I'm gonna murder you, Connie!" Marco called. He formed a snowball and went to chase after the bald elf.

It only took a few minutes before Marco managed to catch up to Connie. Marco aimed his snowball at him but Connie dodged to the side just in time to miss the attack. Instead, the snowball managed to hit someone else.

It hit Annie.

All snowball battles and elves came to a halt as they watched her turn around. There was a murderous glint in her eyes as she stared at Marco.

"THE BEAST HAS BEEN UNLOCKED!! EVERYBODY RUN!" Reiner screamed.

Marco didn't have to be told twice. He followed as the elves all scramed around to avoid getting caught in Annie's wrath.

Marco ran and ran until he hid behind a broken down, abandoned shack. He leaned against the wall, panting hard. Marco chanced a peek behind the wooden building. The coast was clear. Great, he was safe.

Is what he oh so wrongly thought.

Marco turned back around to find Annie zipping past him, multiple snowballs getting thrown his way.

Then, someone shouted, "Incoming!"

An avalanche of snow fell over his head. Marco looked around, confused. Beside him were Sasha and Connie holding a giant tupperwear which must've been where the snow avalanche came from. Surrounding him were also the other elves. Marco's mouth went dry when he realised they were all holding several snowballs in their hands, aiming straight at him.

"W-Wait wha-!"

The snowballs got launched at him with full force. "Welcome to the Junior Flyers division!" They all screamed.

Connie took out his phone to take a photo of the group and a snow covered Marco. "Come on guys, everybody smile for the elfie!"

Once the picture was taken, Marco felt a smirk pulling at his lips. In pretend anger, he said, "I'll give everyone a two second headstart before I tear you apart."

The elves wasted no time scrambling away as Marco started to chase them.

  
_"As the sky turned dark, the night only seemed to be getting better._  
_Snowballs and possibly love, filled the chilly air of winter._  
_With everything going up,_  
_For dear old Marco Bodt._  
_No one would have guessed,_  
_What was about to happen next."_

"Oh no." Moblit made an exasperated face. "What're you gonna do to the poor children?"

"Nothing at all." Hange grinned. "Absolutely nothing at all. Muahahahaha-"

Hange's cackling caused them to choke. They fisted their chest in hopes to stop coughing.

"Hange, are you okay?!"

Hange took a sip of their hot chocolate. "I- I'm good."

  
After the snowball war had ended with no clear winner, the group of elves went back inside the workshop to warm up. Marco huddled up in several thick blankets by the fireplace, the result of being the elf that got "snowed" the most.

Reiner handed Marco a mug of eggnog. "Sorry about what happened out there with the slight betrayal. Snowball wars can get real dirty."

Marco took the beverage from him. The warm mug felt nice against his palms. And it tasted so good! "Mmh... it's fine."

Reiner grinned and patted Marco's back. "Great!"

Marco almost dropped his eggnog with the sheer force of Reiner's pats. Not for the first time that night, Marco questioned if Reiner really was made out of armour.

Jean approached Marco when Reiner left to go pass out more blankets to the others. He sat down next to him with a blanket and mug of his own. "That was their stupid idea of an initiation, by the way."

"Hm?"

"The snowball attack we did on you. They did it to me too when I first came here."

"Ohh, I see." From the corner of Marco's eye, he could see Jean rest his head back on the couch. Marco tried hard not to stare at Jean's revealed throat. He gulped. _Come on, Marco! Stop acting like a creep!_

"Hey, um, where's Armin?" Marco had noticed that the blonde boy had scurried off to somewhere when they entered the workshop.

"He's sending milk and cookies to Santa before he goes off to deliver the gifts and stuff."

Marco chuckled. "Glad to know that Santa Erwin likes milk and cookies."

"Yeah." Jean sat back up. "Hey, Marco..."

"Mhm." Marco turned to look at Jean who was just inches away from his face. Marco's heart beated harder.

Jean grinned. "You've got the most stupidest eggnog mustache!"

"What- Seriously??" Marco furiously wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He glared at Jean's sudden laughter. "It's not funny, Jean!"

"Did I hear someone say eggnog mustache?!" Sasha yelled across the room. "Does someone want to challenge me for my title?!"

Connie sighed. "Shut the hell up, Sasha. No one's challenging you for-"

_"GUYS!"_

The elves turned to look at Armin running down the stairs. He looked absolutely horrified.

Eren rushed up to him. "Armin! What's wrong?"

"S-Santa- he was-he was right there! There was a pwaauwh! And then-ohnononono. They- nono. We're doomed!" Armin screamed as he grabbed his face in horror.

"Woah, Woah. Calm down there." Reiner placed a hand on Armin's shoulder. "Why don't you try to take deep breaths first."

Armin inhaled, then exhaled shakily. His eyes still showed fear but he was more collected than a second ago. "Santa Erwin, Chief Levi, and his squad... they're all gone!"

"What?! What do you mean?" Eren asked.

"I was- I was walking to Santa Erwin's office... to give him his cookies and milk. I didn't go inside but I saw Santa, Chief Levi and his squad were finalising the take off for tonight. A-And suddenly, there were these people? Can I call them people? They were really short. But they a-appeared out of nowhere, wearing black. And then there was this huge cloud of pink smoke. And everyone disappeared!"

Eren's body deflated. "No... this can't be... Who in the world can even do that?!"

Connie rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Dudes wearing black and disappearing into thin air with smoke bombs? Sounds like a ninja to me."

Marco furrowed his brows. _Short people... black clothes... disappearing..._ That sounded really familiar to him. Suddenly, a memory of a lesson from Elf Academy made it's way to Marco's mind. He gasped. "The Grinch's goons!"

Jean raised a brow at him. "What?"

"It must be the Grinch's goons. They fit Armin's description. Short, highly skilled, and... who else would kidnap Santa other than the Grinch?"

"Oh shit." Reiner said. "He's right."

Connie scratched his head. "Man... the Grinch is actually real?"

"Yup." Ymir rested her arms behind the back of her head. "I guest the guy finally got what he wanted. Santa and the chief are gone... Christmas is ruined."

Christa frowned. "This is terrible! What do we do?"

Eren clenched his fists. "We're gonna go find the Grinch's headquarters and demand him to give back Santa Erwin!"

Marco shook his head. "Let's try to communicate with the higher ups. We could ask them for help. Is there a phone here somewhere?"

Armin pointed to the red phone beside the stairs. "That phone is used for emergencies. It connects straight to Darius Zackly, the head of all elf buisness."

"Great! We'll just call him, then everything will be fine." Marco walked up to the red phone. He took it and pressed the call button. Marco frowned when the line got immediately disconnected. A few more tries and he ended up with the same result. Marco felt his heart drop as he looked out the window. It was snowing really hard. This must be why the line isn't connecting.

Marco placed the phone back and headed back to the group. "The phone isn't calling. It's probably because of the bad weather. Is there someone in the North Pole workshop we can talk to? Nifa?"

Armin shook his head. "After I saw what happened, I went straight to her but she wasn't at the reception. _No one_ was at the reception. There's no one we can talk to that can help."

The elves were silent as they realised just how dire the situation was. Santa Erwin, the symbol of Christmas, was gone and no one could be able to do anything.

"Well, shit." Ymir said.

"What the hell are we supposed to do then?" Connie asked.

Eren rolled the sleeves of his green suit. "We're going to do what we should've done when we found out Santa was gone. Find that Grinch bastard and take him down!"

Jean laughed. "Are you even hearing yourself right now? How do you think you're gonna do that?"

"By looking for clues, obviously!"

"What clues, exactly? You gonna lick some pink dust off the floor and get a location signal?"

"Shut the hell up, Jean."

Jean stood up. "Just face it, Eren. Christmas is ruined and we can do nothing about it!"

Eren grabbed the front of Jean's suit. "We need to do something!"

"I have no idea what you're gonna do but I sure as hell know you're gonna make this worse!"

Reiner pried the two boys away from each other. "Hey there. No need to fight. We'll think of something."

Marco nodded. "Yeah, it's okay. We're gonna be okay. I believe that we can come up with something!"

No matter how much comfort Marco's words might’ve brought, everyone knew deep down that there was nothing they could do about the situation they were in. After many years of failing, the Grinch had finally managed to steal Christmas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :O oh no


	2. Chapter 2

_"What a mess the elves had found themselves in._  
_With Santa Erwin and Chief Levi having gone missing._  
_Everyone was very so sure,_  
_That this year's Christmas was over._

_But wait, what was that sound behind the windows?_  
_Could it be, a flicker of light in this time of darkness?"_

  
As the time ticked by, Eren grew more restless by their meaningless discussions. He found that it was "stupid to waste our time here when we can be out there saving Santa!"

Marco sighed. It was just Marco's luck that his first night at the North Pole workshop ended up like this. But hey, at least he got to meet Santa right? _...Who am I kidding? This is the absolute worst._ Just as Marco was cursing whoever brougt this bad luck upon him, a sudden bang outside made him and the others turn their heads towards the window.

"What the hell was that?" Connie asked walking to the windows. He placed a hand over his eyes, trying to search for the source of the sound. When he apparently found it, he gasped. "Holy shit! Guys... you gotta come look at this."

The elves walked over to where Connie was standing. Marco squinted out the window for a while until he found two lumps lying on the snowy ground. No, two _elves_. Marco's eyes widened at the sight. They didn't seem to be moving. "We need to get them inside." He said, already moving towards the entrance.

"I'll help you with it." Reiner said, following Marco outside.

Once the two of them were outside, they turned around the corner of the workshop to where the windows were. It didn't take them long to find the two unconscious elves in the snow. Now that they were up close, Marco could see that one of them was a boy and the other a girl. Both seemed to be around his age.

Reiner moved forward towards them. "I'll take the guy."

Marco nodded and went to place the girl on his shoulder. She was easy to carry because of her light weight and Marco's strong build. Seeing that Reiner had picked up the boy, they made their way back inside the workshop.

The group of elves made way for Marco and Reiner as they placed the two unconscious elves on the carpet, next to the fireplace. All of them huddled around the two bodies and stared at them. With some of the ice melted off of them, Marco could see that the boy had black hair, styled in a bowl cut just like him. The girl on the other hand, had short, wavy, light brown hair.

Marco looked at the group. "Do you guys know them?"

Jean shook his head. "Never seem them 'round here before."

Connie scratched his head, eyes never leaving the bodies on the carpet. "Are they dead or something?"

"They're obviously still breathing, baldy."

"Eh, so, the second Santa got kidnapped by the Grinch's goons- who we don't even know how the hell got in here- these two happened to show up? I don't know guys, seems kinda _suspicious~_ "

Armin nodded. "That's true. We can't just let them wander around with everything going on."

"What do we do with them then?" Sasha asked, her words muffled by her squished cheeks on her hands.

"Execute them." Ymir said casually.

Christa grabbed her face in despair. "No, we will _not_ be doing that! They're just innocent elves!"

Bertholdt huddled in on himself nervously. "I-I have to agree with Ymir on this. They could be a threat to us and s-stab us in the back when we aren't looking."

"It's decided, then." Mikasa took out a dagger from the pocket of her dress. "We'll stab them before they stab us." She started to walk closer to the two elves, dagger already in position to kill.

Eren grabbed Mikasa's arm. "Mikasa! Are you out of your mind?! We can't just take away people's lives like that!"

"Don't worry, Eren. I'll make it quick and easy."

"Woah, woah." Reiner stood up from where he was crouched. "Everyone put your knives down. We're not going to be killing anyone tonight."

Marco thought he heard a muttered "Aww man" from Ymir.

"Not to worry, guys." Reiner smirked. "I know exactly what to do with them."

***

"H-Hello?"

"They're awake! Bertholdt, Armin, cue the lights!"

Two lights at the corner of the room shone on the two elves tied to a wooden chair. They squinted their eyes at the sudden blinding light in the dark room.

A few minutes ago, Reiner's brilliant idea had been to tie the two strangers to a chair and question them. _Good cop, bad cop style_ , he had said. The idea seemed laughable. It _was_ laughable. But Reiner had made good points. The strangers would give them intel, all while they were at an arm's length. Absolutely safe for everyone.

So now they were all inside this small, dark room, except for where the lights shone at the strangers. While the rest of the group stood in the dark, Sasha and Connie stood on either side of the two elves, holding long candy canes that were pointed at the intruders. Marco had been assured it was for intimidation purposes.

The male elf hissed, still half awake. "W-What... Where... are we?" His voice's coarse tone indicated that his throat was dry.

Christa walked up to him with a bottle of water in her hand. "You must be thirsty. Here, drink this."

"Hey, you can't just go giving the intruders water like that." Ymir said.

"They can't give us intel if they can't talk."

"Eh, true." Ymir crossed her arms and muttered, "I don't like you feeding a bunch of strangers though."

Christa ignored her and began to help feed the water into the male elf's mouth because of his tied hands behind his back. He happily accepted it. After he was done, Christa turned to feed the other elf water.

She winked. "Thanks for the water, blondy."

"No problem!"

Marco and Armin held back a fuming Ymir from stomping up to the elf girl. She growled in their arms.

Eren looked at Reiner. "You gonna start the interrogation now? We don't have much time."

"Ah yes." Reiner stepped out of the shadows and into the light. He stood in between the intruders, a few feet away from them. Though he was smiling, Reiner looked very intimidating with his crossed arms against his bulky chest. "So, what have we got ourselves here? Two elves wandering about in the North Pole, huh? State your buisness here."

The male elf raised a brow. "Is this really necessary?" He pulled at the binds on his wrists to emphasise his question.

Connie jabbed the candy cane at his shoulder. "Damn right it's necessary!"

Sasha furrowed her brows. "Yeah! Answer the question!"

The male elf looked at the candy cane then back to Reiner incredulously. "Is this supposed to... _intimidate us_?"

Marco couldn't blame him for asking that. Being threatened by candy canes and elves with gingerbread crumbs on their faces didn't exactly scream intimidation.

Reiner chuckled, which then turned into a dark cackle. He wiped the tears from the corner of his eyes and said, "Oh, so you wanna be intimidated, Mr Chatterbox? Sure, sure. We'll give you intimidation." Reiner stuck out his arms in a theatrical manner. "Bring out, the Grinch!"

The male elf seemed shock for a while at the mention of the Grinch. He looked around him frantically. "W-What? The Grinch?"

Annie stepped into the light, her expression bored. Once the male elf realised that the girl standing close to them was the "Grinch", he relaxed a little.

Reiner turned to Annie. "Annie, I need you to show our friends here some of your moves."

Annie shrugged and began to perform several fighting actions.

The female elf whistled at her. "Wow, you're so cool! You've got to show me how to do that."

"Thanks."

The male elf stared at Reiner with a "are you serious?" look.

Reiner gaped at him. "You're not scared of that?! Come on, Annie. Show him the one with the spin. I'm sure that'll make him piss his pants."

Next to Marco, Jean sighed. "By the time we get the names of these guys, it's gonna be morning already." He rolled up his sleeves and asked Mikasa for her dagger. She gave it to him without question.

Marco raised a brow. "What're you gonna do?"

Jean looked at the dagger, smirking. "I've had enough of this good cop shit... It's time for bad cop to say hello." Marco didn't have time to respond because Jean was already running into the interrogation scene, screaming like a maniac.

He stopped in front of the male elf, both hands holding the dagger to point straight at his neck. "Do you want to know what we wanted to do with you two when you first showed up?" Jean didn't wait for the elf to answer before saying, "Execute you!"

The female elf shrieked. "No! Please don't hurt him- don't kill us!"

Jean smiled crookedly with a wild look in his eyes. He tightened his grip on the dagger. "I'm afraid we'll have to do just that... since it's clear we won't get anything useful from keeping you alive!"

Marco gulped. Jean was a pretty good bad cop.

A bead of sweat rolled down the male elf's head. "Please, don't! We mean you no harm, really!"

"Then tell me, bowl cut! What the hell are you two doing, fainting around in the North Pole on Christmas Eve?! Or else..." Jean pressed the tip of the blade against the elf's skin as a threat.

The male elf stared at it and gulped. "My- My name's Marlowe. And that's Hitch." He cocked his head over to the elf girl. W-We were on a patrol at the North Pole headquarters. We walked around the forest... and when we came back, the whole headquarters was gone! There was nothing!"

Jean's previous confidence wavered. "What do you mean it was gone?" He dug the blade deeper into Marlowe's throat. "Are you telling me the headquarters just disappeared into thin air like that?"

"Ye-Yes!" Marlowe spat out, his voice strained. "That's why we came here! After that happened, we looked around and found the Grinch's goons. They had some kind of bomb with them. That's why we came here to warn Santa. So please, we need to immediately inform Santa he's in danger."

Jean stepped back from Marlowe, staring at the floor.

Connie coughed beside him. "About that... you're a bit too late..."

"Huh?"

Reiner rubbed his hand behind his neck. "Santa's gone. Along with Chief Levi, his squad and a few other elves."

Marlowe's jaw dropped. "Wha- _What?!_ "

Ymir shrugged. "Yeah, it was real tragic. The coward's goons came in and smoke bombed them out of existence."

Malowe was silent for a while, looking at the ground with furrowed brows. He seemed to be processing the news. After a while, he looked back up at the group. "Then why are you guys here?"

Sasha tilted her head to the side. "What? Because we work here..?"

"You do. I recognise those uniforms. The Junior Flyers division, right? You guys are the next generation sleigh riders."

Connie raised a brow. "Yeah? I'm pretty sure we know that."

Marlowe pursed his lips, getting straight to the point. "With Santa and his team gone, shouldn't you guys be out in the sky delivering presents?"

"Oh..... _Oh_."

The elves from the Junior Flyers division face palmed. Right. Why didn't they think of that before?

Sasha gasped. "He's right! We can save Christmas!"

Eren shot his arm up into the air. "It's about damn time!"

Christa grabbed Marco's hands, bouncing in her spot. "Isn't this great, Marco? Christmas isn't ruined!"

Marco smiled widely. "Yeah, this is amazing!"

Marlowe cleared his throat from where he was still tied to a chair. "It's great that you've got the whole saving Christmas thing sorted out but, did you forget the part where there could possibly be a bomb in this building?"

Armin frowned. "Oh yeah..." He placed his hand under his chin, deep in thought. "Before we go out, we'll need to come up with a plan to cover everything."

And so they planned. Armin volunteered to stay back to look for the bomb and defuse it. Mikasa and Annie were to stay back as well to act as a defense if any more of the Grinch's goons showed up. Mikasa disliked the idea, insisting to be with Eren to make sure he didn't get hurt. Eren got mad at that and convinced her to stay by saying that her skills were needed in the workshop to protect the other elves.

Marlowe and Hitch had also been included in the plan, much to their surprise. Jean had suggested for them to keep an eye on the workshop too. Which left Eren, Ymir, Christa, Sasha, Connie, Jean and Marco to deliver the gifts. Marco guessed that the reindeers were probably gone so Reiner and Bertholdt should be the reindeers to carry the sleigh. He had also suggested for him to stay back in the workshop, since it was his first day.

Reiner had pulled him away to whisper to him, "Marco, why do you think the Grinch took away all things Christmas, except for us- the next generation sleigh riders?"

Marco lifted his shoulders in a shrugging manner. "Because he couldn't see us...?"

Reiner shook his head. "It's because we're idiots. And ninety-eight percent of the elves riding the sleigh tonight are the most idiotic idiots. But you," Reiner placed a hand on Marco's shoulder. "You're like a more... responsible idiot."

Marco pursed his lips, unsure whether to be offended or not. "Thank you...? I think I get what you're trying to say."

Reiner grinned and patted his back. "That's great, freckles!"

After everything was settled, the group of elves grabbed everything they needed, including Santa's sack of toys and headed out. Marco shivered in the snowy air, puffs of breath showing up. He rubbed his hands together to try and warm up. Somehow the blizzard had gotten even worse. He hoped that this wouldn't interfere with the ride.

They stopped at where Santa's sleigh was. Marco marvelled at it. The sleigh was red in colour, golden carvings decorating the surfaces and edges. When they got closer, Marco could see that the cushy seats inside were coloured in dark green. Marco's eyes were filled with stars as he stared at it.

Jean rolled his eyes at him but his voice was fond when he spoke. "It really is something, huh?"

Marco smiled breathlessly. "Yeah. I've dreamt of this since I was like- a baby!"

"It's a shame you won't get to see Santa in action tonight... Sucks that this is all happening on your first day."

Marco stared up at the sky, searching for words. Snowflakes landed on his face as he spoke. "It's true everything has literally... went to shit. I mean, I definitely did not expect this to happen when I came here." He gestured his arms around him. "But this is probably one of the best nights of my life. I got to meet Santa, I fought in a snowball war and now I'm saving Christmas with the weirdest elves I've ever met! But I..." Marco turned to look at Jean with a smile. "I like them a lot."

Jean's mouth had dropped a little and Marco couldn't tell if the blush on Jean's face was formed by the cold or... _something else._ Marco mentally slapped himself for thinking that.

Jean averted his eyes from Marco. "We-Well, it's great that you're having such a good time. A-And I don't know why the hell you like the others, but I'm sure you like _me_ the b-best!"

Marco chuckled. "S-Sure, Jean."

Connie dropped the sack of toys unceremoniously onto the back of the sleigh. He placed his hands on his hips as he looked at Jean and Marco with a unimpressed expression. "Thanks for all the help guys. I really appreciate it."

"Sorry Connie." Marco mumbled.

Once everyone had said their goodbyes and good lucks to each other, Reiner and Bertholdt transformed into their reindeer forms. It was just as amazing to watch as the first time. Then Ymir and Christa threw some magic dust on the reindeers so they would be able to fly.

The riders hopped onto their seats in the sleigh. Eren, Jean, Connie and Marco sat in the front while Ymir, Christa and Sasha sat in the middle row.

Jean grinned. "Let's fucking save Christmas!"

Marco gave a lopsided smile. "As much as I think you're cool, Jean, that was really corny."

Jean glared at him, then his eyes widened, realising what Marco just said. "Wait- you think I'm coo- _ahhhhhhh_!"

Connie pulled the reins on the reindeers with no warning. Their hooves made crunchy sounds on the snow as they ran until they lifted off. Marco's fingers dug into the seat as the sleigh flew up into the sky. The elves screamed as they went up and up until they stopped at an appropriate height.

Marco took a second to catch his breath before looking around him. It was a bit hard to see because of the snow but Marco could make out little buildings below them, the lights shining bright. _Holy shit. Holy shit! I'm in Santa's sleigh, flying!_ Everything was so overwhelming, he felt like he was going to faint.

Christa thrusted her arms into the air. "Woohoo! This is crazy!"

Eren stared at the sky around him. "Wow... this is truly amazing. I feel so... free."

Still holding on to the reins, Connie asked, "What do we do now then?"

Marco furrowed his brows in thought. "If I remember correctly, there's supposed to be a map _riiight_.... here." He reached out and pressed a button in front of Connie. A small hologram of the Earth lit up with red dots covering parts of it. "The red dots are the places where we're supposed to deliver the gifts."

Sasha looked at the globe from where she rested her face on the front seat. "Yeesh, that's a lot of houses."

Marco nodded. "Each of us needs to deliver a few thousand gifts at the same time as Connie steers the sleigh. Then one of us switch places with Connie, deliver the gifts, and repeat."

"Wait, I think there's something here that can make this thing easier." Jean fished around the bottom of the sleigh before he retrieved a yellow, glowing ball. He smirked. "It's for emergencies only but I'm pretty sure this is one of the biggest emergencies in history."

Marco gasped. "It's the time-slowing thingy! Good call, Jean. We can use this to slow down time for a few hours to give us enough time."

Connie looked at the group for a brief moment. "Is everyone ready then?"

Everyone gave a firm nod.

Ymir took the yellow ball since she was the only one who knew how to activate it. After it was activated, the elves wasted no time grabbing gifts from the giant sack and dropping into chimneys to place gifts under Christmas trees. Marco only lingered for a second to marvel at the inside of the sack that seemed endless with space.

Everything was going smooth with no mishaps. Maybe a few slip-ups here and there but it was smooth nonetheless.

When they were done with half of the gifts, they decided to take a five minute break. The elves had to wait for Sasha first because she wasn't in the sleigh yet.

After a few moments of waiting, Sasha climbed up the sleigh smiling sheepishly. The sleigh began to move again when she was in. "Sorry I'm late guys. I got a bit distracted with the cookies and milk."

Connie sighed. "Holy hell, Sasha. Don't tell me you ate all of them."

Ymir snickered. "I don't think Reiner and Bertholdt could carry us any longer if you did."

"I didn't eat _all_ of them! Maybe one... or two. But I brought some with me!" Sasha reached inside the giant lump forming at her side, right where her pocket is. She retrieved a handful of cookies that were mostly broken into pieces and offered them to the group. "Here... you guys want some?"

"Sure!" Marco took one cookie with a smile. "Thank you."

As Marco happily ate his cookie, he realised that the elves around him, excluding Sasha, had their jaws wide open. He raised a brow at them.

"Sa-Sasha never shares her food." Jean said.

Eren grinned disbelievingly. "Man, first Santa gets kidnapped and now Sasha's sharing food. What has the world come to?"

Connie stood up and pointed finger guns at Sasha. "Who are you and what the hell have you done with potato girl?"

Christa gently pushed his finger guns away. "Let's just... take the cookies and say thanks."

The group took the cookies hesitatingly and smiled a little when nothing bad happened. They ate silently as they enjoyed the cool weather.

Marco clapped the crumbs off his hands when he had finished eating. "Why don't we check on Armin and the rest?"

"Yeah, sure." Jean let go of one of the reins to press on a white button on the right side.

It dinged for a few seconds before a rectangular hologram popped up showing Armin. He had a pair of goggles on his head with black stains covering parts of his faces. He smiled as he waved at them, a screwdriver in his hand. "Hi guys! How's it going?"

"Nothing much, dude." Connie said.

Eren gaped at Connie. " _Nothing much?!_ We're in the sky! On a flying sleigh! Doing Santa's job!"

Armin laughed. "I'm glad everything's going good on your side." Armin looked down with a frown pulling at his lips. Tinkering sounds could be heard from the other side. "I can't really say the same for us at the workshop..." There was a small sort of explosion sound in the distance.

"Is everyone okay? Did anything happen?" Marco asked, worry laced in his voice.

"Everyone's fine. We managed to find the bomb. But it's right in the... power room. Where all the main magic supply is. The timer was already at forty minutes when I started to work on it. And then, some of the Grinch's goons started showing up."

Christa frowned. "Oh no! Did they do anything to the elves?"

Armin looked back up at the group with a small smile. He shook his head. "The others managed to hold them off. The goons are super fast but when you hit them they explode into confetti. Oh, and Annie found these ball launchers to shoot at them!"

"That's good to hear." Marco said.

"Yup, I should...." Armin's gaze drifted past the group. He squinted his eyes and came closer to the screen. "Hey, is it just the screen or is there five black dots flying behind you guys?"

The sleigh riders tilted their head to the side before looking behind them. It was a bit difficult to see because of the snow but there were, in fact, five black dots flying in the sky.

"Hold up..." Connie said. "Aren't those the Grinch's goons?!"

Sasha gasped, placing her hands on her cheeks. "Oh my gosh, they are!"

On the other side of the hologram, Mikasa peeked her head into the view of the call. "Grinch's goons? Are they attacking you? Is Eren okay?"

Eren grumbled. "Would you stop worrying about me like I'm some kind of baby? I'm fine! The goons are just... flying. Like they're watching us."

"Yikes." Armin said, only half of his attention on the call. "I hope you get things figured out. Me and Mikasa should probably go now. See you guys later."

The elves said their goodbyes to the both of them, then the hologram disappeared, ending the call.

"Are the goons still there?" Jean asked, pulling on the reins a little.

Ymir took a peek behind her shoulder before saying, "Yup."

Connie shifted in his seat uneasily. "Hella creepy."

"Yeah..." Marco said, biting his lip. "Our five minute break is over." He looked at Jean. "Are you gonna be okay by yourself here?"

Jean clicked his tongue. "Of course I am. I'm the best, aren't I?" He turned to wink at Marco.

Holy shit, that's attractive. "Uh, I- yeah-I mean- uhhhhh...."

Connie nudged Marco's ribs with his elbow, wiggling his eyebrows at him. "Say whatever you want, horse-face. The only person you'll be the best to is _Marco~_ "

Marco shot daggers at Connie before turning to the group. "Let's go, everyone. We're halfway done."

The elves continued with their routine of dropping into chimneys, delivering gifts and switching sleigh riders. They did all this with the Grinch's goons tailing their backs. It was definitely uncomfortable to fly with those things behind at first. But as time went on and the gifts in the sack lessened, the elves almost forgot that the goons were even there.

 _Almost_. There were only a hundred gifts left when it happened.

Sasha was steering them to their next stop until suddenly, there was a loud bang, followed by a closer clink that made the sleigh shook. The elves grabbed onto their seats as the sleigh shook even more with the bangs that kept on coming.

Sasha's grip on the reins tightened. Her voice showed hints of nervousness when she asked, "Hey, what's going on back there?" A bullet shot past her, answering her question. She screamed. "That's a bullet!"

Jean ducked lower to make sure he didn't get hit by the firing bullets. "It's those shitty goons! They're firing at us, with actual _guns_!"

"Hey, Reiner, Bertholdt, can you guys like shake them of our tail?!" Ymir called over the loud noise.

The reindeers at the front grunted before making a sharp turn to the left, their pace accelerating. For a moment, the silence made it seemed like they had lost the goons. But then the shots were being fired again, even more aggressive than before. As if the goons were losing their patience.

Connie hugged his knees to his chest, rocking back and forth. "Oh my god, we're gonna die..." He mumbled.

"Nonsense!" Eren clenched his fist, glaring at no one in particular. "We just need to kill those bastards and we'll live. If we can find a weapon here somewhere..."

Sasha lit up like a light bulb. "Ah! I have some candy canes in my pockets! .... Don't look at me like that! Here, Connie, take the reins." She handed the reins over to a sulking Connie.

Connie took it from her as he mumbled, "We're doomed."

Sasha stood on the seat of the sleigh. She took out two candy canes from the pockets of her dress. "Now, now, everyone. Didn't I tell you guys," She took a deep breath as she began to aim her shot, her hands steady. "Candy canes can become the most dangerous weapons... when desired!" Sasha threw the candy canes at her targets. She jumped in excitement when the goons poofed into confetti.

Marco should've been concerned at the violent rocking of the sleigh but he was too shocked at Sasha's crazy accurate aim. He made a mental note to not mess with her when she hand a candy cane in her hand.

"Damn..." Ymir smirked. "Who would've thought."

Sasha handed some of her candy canes to the group. They took it from her gratefully.

The goons got more desperate because now they were coming closer to them, movements as quick as a blink of an eye. But Eren and Marco managed to get two more of the goons, stabbing them in the front when they got close enough.

Marco stared at his candy cane after he had stabbed the goon. It felt weird. The first sensation he felt was flesh but when he stuck the candy cane in deeper, it felt like styrofoam? It was oddly satisfying. Marco shook his head, guilty for having that thought. _Get your head together Marco, there's still one more goon out there._

Suddenly, a flash of black crossed Marco's sight. At the last second, he saw a goon a few feet away from him with a gun pointed right at his chest. Marco scrunched his eyes at the sound of the loud bang, bracing himself for the shot. He thinks he hears someone scream his name in the distance. _Am I... going to die?_

Marco's ears were ringing when he felt himself be pushed to the ground. _Am I... alive?_ He opened his eyes slowly and inspected his body for bullet holes but there was none to be found. He laughed to himself in disbelief. "Oh my gosh, I'm alive!"

 _Wait, how?_ Marco was so sure that bullet was going to hit him. He looked around to try to get a clue of what happened until his eyes landed on the face of an ash brown haired elf. "Jean?" Marco beamed at him. "Jean! You saved me!"

Marco furrowed his brows when Jean grunted, knees wobbling on the ground of the sleigh. Then Marco realised Jean was clutching the side of his right arm tightly. Marco's face paled when he saw a patch of blood forming there. Jean looked up at him with fear in his eyes. Marco scooted closer to Jean to tend to his wounds, voice wavering as he spoke. "You.... you got _hit_... to save me. Fuck, Jean...."

Jean laughed bitterly which slowly turned into coughing. He leaned back against the wall of the sleigh. "I.... owed... you one."

Marco's fumbling with Jean's wound came to a halt as he looked at him with an incredulous look on his face. "That was a snowball war, Jean! I- I got hit by _snow_! Not a _bullet_!"

Jean gave Marco a weak smile that made his eyes crinckle. Marco felt like his heart was being punched. "It's okay, Marco. I would do it.... again... if I.... had to, because..." Jean grabbed Marco's hand that was covered in blood, looking him in the eyes with overwhelming emotions. "I.. think... you're cool... too."

Marco stared back at Jean, tears beginning to run down his cheek. He wiped furiously at his eyes with the sleeves of his uniform. "You're- you're gonna be okay, Jean." Then Marco felt Sasha and Connie wrapping their arms around him and Jean, pulling them into a group hug.

Sasha sobbed. "Please don't go, Jean!"

Connie nodded, snot trailing down his nose. "I know we ma-make fun of y-you a lot b-but we love you!"

Jean groaned, squeezing his eyes shut. "Too much noise..."

Christa spoke up from behind the sobbing group. "Uhm, I think we should give Jean some space. And don't worry, Jean won't die! I found this under the seats." Christa lifted up a first-aid kit. "I know how to remove a bullet from someone!"

Marco rubbed his eyes, sniffing. "T-Thank you so much Christa."

Christa smiled at him. "You guys should get going. There's still about a hundred more gifts to deliver. I'll stay up here with Ymir."

Marco nodded, looking at Jean for a brief moment before standing up. "Yeah.... sure. Stay safe."

Before the group descended to the ground, Eren gave Jean a small grin. "Hey, Jean, I didn't know you had it in you.... to do something like that."

Jean flipped the finger at him weakly. "Fuck... you."

Then the group went down into chimneys and houses to deliver the remaining gifts. By the time they were done, it was already early in the morning. They plopped back onto the sleigh with a groan. Marco's limbs were aching so bad. He just wanted to take a long, hot bath when they got back. Now he understands why Santa can sleep for the whole year.... if that's even true, that is.

Marco sat down next to a sleeping Jean. Marco let his eyes wander over the elf. Jean's arm was now wrapped in a clean bandage, a sling over his shoulder to support his arm. Marco bit his lip in worry and moved his gaze up to Jean's face. Marco's breath caught in his throat. Jean was truly beautiful, all his striking features softened in his peaceful state. He chuckled softly at the drool running down his mouth.

A hand on Marco's shoulder made him jump a little. Marco turned to look at Christa on his left side. She smiled reassuringly at him. "He's gonna be okay."

Marco smiled back. "I know, because he's.... the best."

Connie gagged behind him. "Oh my gosh, Marco, that was so cheesy it seriously hurt me. I would be upset but I can't miss this great content."

"Huh?" Marco watched as Connie stood up, taking his phone out of his pocket. He began to take pictures of the sleeping Jean.

Sasha giggled and peeked at the phone. She pointed at the screen. "Put some of that filter. It really enhances all the elements in the pic."

Ymir smirked, eyes still focusing in front of her. "Send me all the pics."

Connie snickered. "For sure."

Ymir began to steer them in the direction of the North Pole. Marco tried to relax for the whole ride, only tensing when he heard Jean grunting. He focused on enjoying the cool air and breathtaking scenery to distract him.

After a few minutes, Sasha pointed out below them. "Guys, look! It's the workshop!"

Marco looked over the sleigh and there it was. The North Pole workshop shining bright with all it's decorating lights. Marco smiled at the sight of it in one piece. Looks like Armin managed to defuse the bomb. As the sleigh began to descend towards the workshop, Marco could make out a few faces. Armin, Mikasa, Marlowe and-

"Santa?" Marco rubbed his eyes, worried that his tiredness was starting to make him see things.

Eren stood up from his seat and started to scream, "Ahhhhhh!! It's Santa Erwin! He's back! He's-" Eren wobbled as the sleigh began to descend a bit too quickly.

"Hold on, everyone! I suck at landing!" Ymir called as she pulled on the reins tightly.

Marco held on to his seat as the sleigh descended down at top speed, wind flowing wildly in his hair. Next to him, Jean had woken up from his slumber with fear in his eyes. Marco pitied him for waking up to such a moment. The elves all groaned when they finally hit the ground with a rough landing.

They shakily made their way out of the sleigh. Ymir went to take the reins off of Bertholdt and Reiner. The group had no time to calm down from the near-death experience because they were suddenly being swarmed by sobbing elves.

Armin rubbed at his eyes but there were still more tears running down. "We- We did it, guys! We s-saved Christmas!"

Sasha and Connie began to wail aswell, tears already forming at their eyes. They bounced up and down together with pure glee. Mikasa had pulled Eren into a tight hug, much to Eren's displeasure. Hitch was clinging to Marlowe who had a small smile on his face. Annie even threw a handful of confetti onto the group of elves, though she had a blank expression on her face.

Lost in Marco's own joy, he turned to Jean with stars in his eyes before grabbing both sides of his face and pulling him in for a kiss. Marco's body lit up with fireworks when he felt Jean's lip against his. He melted under the sensation. They felt so soft...

Marco's eyes shot wide open. He stepped back when he realised what he had just done. _Ohmygoshohmygosh! I kissed Jean!_ Marco stuttered, words spilling out of his mouth like a waterfall, "Oh my gosh, I-I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have done that. E-Everyone was happy and then I got happy and it just happened and I'm so sorry, I-"

Marco froze when Jean stepped forward, placing a kiss on Marco's cheek. He lingered there for a second longer before pulling back. Marco's heart beated faster at Jean's flushed face. "I-I didn't mind it. It was n-nice. I, uh... I liked it."

Marco felt his own face beginning to heat up. "O-Oh. I l-liked it too."

The two elves blushed awkwardly at each other before they heard a yelp come from beside them. They turned to see Santa Erwin and Chief Levi on the ground with a teary eyed Sasha, Connie, Eren and Armin clutching to them. Suddenly, Marco felt himself and Jean being pulled into the hug by Reiner and Bertholdt, mindful of Jean's sling. Soon, everyone else followed. Even Annie who had been dragged in by Hitch.

Though Marco was slowly suffocating to death in the tight embrace, he smiled to himself. They did it. They saved Christmas.

***

  
_"'Twas the morning of Christmas, when a ceremony had been held._  
_Brave elves were what they were declared._  
_Each retrieved a golden medal,_  
_A sight for which to really marvel._  
_Once the event was over, a holiday feast was cooked,_  
_For the elves in the North Pole workshop."_

  
Marco's idea had been to take a long, nice bath and pass out on his bed. He was sure the others thought the same. But they had only gotten in a few hours of sleep before they were woken up for some kind of ceremony. The elves were less grumpy when they found out it was a ceremony for them. Even getting a gold medal. Marlowe and Hitch had gotten one too.

And now there was a holiday-breakfast-feast kinda thing cooked for the entire workshop. Marco's mouth watered at the sight of all the delicious, warm food. He scooped a generous amount of lasagna and plopped it onto his plate. Marco began to chew on his food happily before screaming caught his attention.

"FOOD! SO MANY, SO GOOD!!" Sasha took handfuls of food and stuffed them into her mouth, chomping away.

Connie tried to smack her hands away. "Oi, wasn't the cookies last night enough for you?!"

Sasha responded with a growl.

"Should we be concerned?" Marco and Marlowe asked at the same time. They shot their heads to each other with raised brows.

Jean and Hitch cackled at the sight, also saying in sync, "You guys look like twins!" Both of them slowly turned their heads to each other, pursing their lips.

The air was tense as the four elves stared at each other. Marlowe let out a humorous breath of air. "Well, that was..."

"Weird." Marco chuckled then went back to eating. He turned to face Jean. "How's your arm?"

"It's okay, I guess." Jean chewed thoughtfully on his spaghetti before adding, "Showering is a real bitch though-" He choked on his food after he was pushed by Eren.

Eren had been in the middle of retelling the story of what happened yesterday until he accidentally shoved Jean with his wild gestures. He muttered a "Sorry, Jean." before going back to his story.

Marco handed Jean a glass of water. He took it and drank it all in one gulp. Then he shoved Eren back. "Fucking bastard. You could've killed me."

Eren glared at him. "Don't be so dramatic. I said sorry, didn't I?"

"I barely heard it!" Jean stood up to match Eren head on. "And you're calling _me_ dramatic? The story you're telling right now is _way_ exaggerated!"

Eren growled. "Fuck off, Jean-boi!"

Jean grabbed the front of Eren's uniform and hissed, "Didn't I say not to fucking call me that?! Don't think I can't kill you with one arm."

"I'd like to see you fucking try!"

Marco watched warily as Jean picked up a handful of jelly and smashed it in Eren's face. He decided to speak up. "Hey guys, let's just forget about-" Marco was cut of as a bowl of mashed potato was thrown to his face by Eren, meaning to hit Jean.

Jean gasped offendingly. "How dare you?! You hit Marco!"

"It was an accident-"

Eren was cut off as he had been hit by not Jean, not Marco, but by Ymir. She stood on the table with two blueberry muffins in her hands. She screamed, "FOOD FIGHT!"

The dining room then erupted into chaos with all types of food being thrown across the place. A tear rolled down Marco's eye as he watched the desserts get smashed onto the surface. He thought Sasha would've been as upset as he was to see the food being abused like this. But to his surprise, she was at the centre of the action, jumping with glee to catch the food in her mouth.

Santa Erwin and Chief Levi chose the wrong time to enter the room because a pie had been thrown by Connie at the entrance just at that moment.

"-this new tea shop that opened-" The Chief was saying to Santa before being hit by said pie. He stopped dead in his tracks.

The room then fell into a deafening silence, every single elf horrified as they watched the pie slide off Chief Levi's face. Marco didn't know how it was possible but the Chief emitted an even more deadly aura then that time he hit Annie.

Santa Erwin looked at the elves from the Junior Flyers division with sympathy. "I suggest you kids run. Hohoho."

Then Chief Levi lifted up his hand, apparently giving them a five second headstart. _How kind of him_ , Marco thought before abruptly scramming away with the rest of his shrieking friends. He went out the other entrance and ran like his life was on the line. He had a feeling that it was.

Marco managed to get a few metres away from the dining room before he hears someone calling his name. He looked around for the source of the sound until he found a hand waving around the corner. Marco walked towards it and saw his friends huddled in a small room.

Reiner handed out a hand for Marco. "Come here, Marco. We can't beat the Chief in a battle of speed. Now it's turned into a game of hide-and-seek."

Marco eyed the hand suspiciously. "No backstabbing?"

Reiner grinned. "No backstabbing."

Marco felt a grin of his own pulling at his lips as he grabbed Reiner's hand. "Good."

He stepped inside the room of shaking elves and laid his head against the wall. He catched his breath as he and his friends waited for their inevitable doom.

Was Marco terrified for his life? Absolutely. Did he piss his pants? Maybe. And was Chief Levi going to find them just about now and tear them to pieces? Judging by the looks of everyone, yes. A hundred percent yes.

But Marco smiled despite himself.

Why, you ask? Well, because no matter what dreaded punishment were given to them, or whatever shit the universe threw at them, or if death was staring them right in the eyes, Marco knew, that the elves in the Junior Flyers division would face all of it, together.

  
_"The end."_

Hange closed the book with a soft thump. They stretched their arms out, letting out a content sigh. "So, whatcha think, Moblit?" Hange looked over to Moblit, feeling concerned when he had his arm covered over his eyes.

Moblit whimpered, trying his best to hide the fact that he was crying. He, a grown man, crying to a Christmas story. How embarrassing... "It was- It was nice."

"Aww, are you crying? C'mere." Hange stood up and opened their arms for Moblit.

Moblit rubbed his eyes before standing up aswell to hug Hange. He rested his head in the crook of their neck and sighed. "I don't know why, but there's this part of me that feels... _really_ happy for them. They feel... familiar."

Hange gasped and pulled back. "Right?! I bawled my eyes out the first time I read it."

"Where did you... get this book?"

Hange tapped their chin as they thought. "Uhmm... in the local library! I found this box deep inside the History section. I opened it and I found a bunch of books with these characters!" Hange mumbled, "Kinda weird that it was lying around in the History section. History Fiction would've been more appropriate."

Moblit furrowed his brows. "Yeah.... weird indeed."

Hange lit up. "Oh! There was this one story of them where they were flying around with giant naked babies! Ahhhh, it looked so cool, Moblit! I think there were even these characters that were really similar to us! I don't think you would like it though, the giant babies kill people."

Moblit grimaced. "A story where our doppelgangers lived in a world with murderous, giant, naked babies? No, thank you."

Hange laughed, throwing their head back. "I figured."

The clock on the wall suddenly dinged, signaling that it was midnight. Hange grinned at Moblit. "You know what time it is?"

"Time for us to go to bed?"

"No- well, yes but, it's Christmas!" Hange grabbed Moblit's hands and bounced up and down.

"Oh." Moblit smiled then leaned down to capture Hange's lips in a sweet kiss. "Merry Christmas, Hange."

Hange's face turned a shade of red before grinning. "Merry Christmas to you too!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!! And Happy New Year in advance! 
> 
> ♡♥


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